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The Los Angeles Angels are an American
professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...
team based in the
Los Angeles metropolitan area Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million in 2021, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino C ...
. The Angels compete in
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
(MLB) as a member club of the
American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...
(AL)
West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...
division. Since 1966, the team has played its home games at
Angel Stadium Angel Stadium of Anaheim is a baseball stadium located in Anaheim, California. Since its opening in 1966, it has served as the home ballpark of the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB), and was also the home stadium to the Los An ...
in Anaheim,
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
. The franchise was founded in
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
in 1961 by Gene Autry as one of MLB's first two expansion teams and the first to originate in California. Deriving its name from an earlier
Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...
franchise that played in the Pacific Coast League (PCL), the team was based in Los Angeles until moving to Anaheim in 1966. Due to the move, the franchise was known as the California Angels from 1965 to 1996 and the Anaheim Angels from 1997 to 2004. "Los Angeles" was added back to the name in 2005, but because of a lease agreement with Anaheim that required the city to also be in the name, the franchise was known as the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim until 2015. The current Los Angeles Angels name came into use the following season. The Angels won the
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
in 2002, their first and only championship appearance to date. They are one of three MLB franchises to win their sole appearance in the World Series. This was followed by an era in which the Angels made six playoff berths within a decade. The 2010s and 2020s have seen star players Mike Trout and
Shohei Ohtani , nicknamed "Shotime", is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher, designated hitter and outfielder for the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Nippon Professional ...
enter the fold, and the two have combined to win the
Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award The Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) is an annual Major League Baseball (MLB) award given to one outstanding player in the American League and one in the National League. Since 1931, it has been awarded by the Baseball Writers' ...
four times. However, the Angels have had eight straight seasons since 2014 where they failed to reach the postseason, with their seven consecutive losing seasons (2016-present) being tied with the 1971-77 teams for most ever in franchise history.


Franchise history

The "Los Angeles Angels" name originates from the first Los Angeles-based sports team, the ''
Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...
'', who took the name "Angels" from the English translation of "Los Angeles", which means "The Angels" in Spanish. The team name started in 1892; in 1903, the team name continued in L.A. through the PCL, which is now a minor league affiliate of MiLB. The Angels franchise of today was established in MLB in 1961 after former owner Gene Autry bought the rights to continue the franchise name from Walter O'Malley, the former
Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
owner who had acquired the franchise from
Phil Wrigley Philip Knight Wrigley (December 5, 1894 – April 12, 1977), often called P. K. Wrigley, was an American chewing gum manufacturer and a Major League Baseball executive, inheriting both of those roles as the quiet son of his much more flamboyant fa ...
, the owner of the Chicago Cubs at the time. As stated in the book ''Under the Halo: The Official History of Angels Baseball'', "Autry agreed to buy the franchise name for $350,000, and continue the history of the previously popular Pacific Coast League team as his own expansion team in the MLB." After the Angels joined the Major Leagues, some players from the Angels' PCL team joined the Major League Angels in 1961. As an expansion franchise, the club continued in Los Angeles as the "Los Angeles Angels", and played their home games at Los Angeles'
Wrigley Field Wrigley Field is a Major League Baseball (MLB) stadium on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It is the home of the Chicago Cubs, one of the city's two MLB franchises. It first opened in 1914 as Weeghman Park for Charles Weeghman's Chicago ...
(not to be confused with
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
's ballpark of the same name), which had formerly been the home of the PCL
Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...
. The Angels were one of two expansion teams established as a result of the
1961 Major League Baseball expansion The 1961 Major League Baseball expansion resulted in the formation of two new Major League Baseball (MLB) franchises in the American League (AL). A new club was started in Washington, D.C. and took the existing name of the Senators, as the previou ...
, along with the second incarnation of the Washington Senators (now Texas Rangers). The team then moved in to newly built
Dodger Stadium Dodger Stadium is a baseball stadium in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It is the home stadium of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers. Opened in 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a cost of ...
, which the Angels referred to as Chavez Ravine, where they were tenants of the
Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
through . The team's founder, entertainer Gene Autry, owned the franchise for its first 36 years. During Autry's ownership, the team made the playoffs three times, but never won the pennant. The team has gone through several name changes in their history, first changing their name to the California Angels on September 2, 1965, with a month still left in the season, in recognition of their upcoming move to the newly constructed
Anaheim Stadium Angel Stadium of Anaheim is a baseball stadium located in Anaheim, California. Since its opening in 1966, it has served as the home ballpark of the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB), and was also the home stadium to the Los Angel ...
in Anaheim at the start of the 1966 season. When
The Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Disney Stud ...
took control of the team in , it extensively renovated Anaheim Stadium, which was then renamed
Edison International Edison International is a public utility holding company based in Rosemead, California. Its subsidiaries include Southern California Edison, and unregulated non-utility business assets Edison Energy. Edison's roots trace back to Holt & Knu ...
Field of Anaheim. The City of Anaheim contributed $30 million to the $118 million renovation with a renegotiated lease providing that the names of both the stadium and team contain the word "Anaheim". The team was renamed the Anaheim Angels and became a subsidiary of Disney Sports, Inc. (later renamed Anaheim Sports, Inc.). Under Disney's ownership and the leadership of manager
Mike Scioscia Michael Lorri Scioscia (, ; born November 27, 1958), nicknamed "Sosh" and "El Jefe", is an American former Major League Baseball catcher and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He managed the Anaheim / Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim / Los Ang ...
, the Angels won their first pennant and World Series championship in 2002. In 2005, new owner Arturo Moreno added "Los Angeles" to the team's name. In compliance with the terms of its lease with the city of Anaheim, which required "Anaheim" be a part of the team's name, the team was officially renamed the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Fans, residents, and the municipal governments of both Anaheim and Los Angeles all objected to the change, with the City of Anaheim pursuing litigation; nevertheless, the change was eventually upheld in court and the city dropped its lawsuit in 2009. The team usually refers to itself as the ''Angels'' or ''Angels Baseball'' in its home media market, and the name "Los Angeles" never appears in the stadium, on the Angels' uniforms, nor on official team merchandise. However, throughout the team's history in Anaheim, the uniforms have traditionally said "Angels" instead of the city or state name, depending on the team's geographic identifier at the time. Local media in
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...
tend to omit a geographic identifier and refer to the team as ''the Angels'' or ''the Halos''. The
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
, the most prominent news service in the U.S., refers to the team as ''the Los Angeles Angels'', ''the Angels'', or ''Los Angeles''. In 2013, the team officially planned to drop "of Anaheim" from its name and restore its original name "Los Angeles Angels", as part of a new Angel Stadium lease negotiated with the Anaheim city government. Although the deal was never finalized, as of 2020, most official sources omit the "of Anaheim" suffix. On December 20, 2019, the city of Anaheim voted to sell Angel Stadium and the land around it to a group led by the team owner Arte Moreno for $325 million. The deal would have included a new or refurbished stadium, 5,175 apartments and condominiums, 2.7 million square feet (251,000 square meters) of office space, and 1.1 million square feet (102,000 square meters) of retail stores, restaurants and hotels. The deal was later canceled by the city council due to bribery and corruption allegations by the
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, t ...
on the deal between an Angels Baseball employee and Anaheim mayor Harry Sidhu, allegedly in exchange for a $1 million campaign contribution toward the mayor's reelection. Mayor Sidhu resigned on May 24, 2022.


Team traditions

The mantra "Win One for the Cowboy" is a staple that is deeply rooted in Angels history for fans. The saying refers to the Angels' founder and previous owner, Gene Autry, who never saw his Angels win a World Series in his 38 years as owner. Years went by as the team experienced many losses just strikes away from American League pennants. By the time the Angels won their first World Series in 2002, Autry had been dead for four years. After winning the World Series, Angels player
Tim Salmon Timothy James Salmon (born August 24, 1968), nicknamed "King Fish", is an American former professional baseball player and current sportcaster. He played his entire career in Major League Baseball (MLB) from to with the Anaheim Angels as an o ...
ran into the home dugout and brought out one of Autry's signature white Stetson hats in honor of the "singing cowboy". Autry's #26 was retired as the 26th man on the field for the Angels.
Angel Stadium of Anaheim Angel Stadium of Anaheim is a baseball stadium located in Anaheim, California. Since its opening in 1966, it has served as the home ballpark of the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB), and was also the home stadium to the Los Ange ...
is nicknamed "The Big A". It has a section in center field nicknamed the "California Spectacular", a formation of artificial rocks made to look like a desert mountain in California. The California Spectacular has a running waterfall, and also shoots fireworks from the rocks before every game; anytime the Angels hit a home run or win a home game the fireworks shoot from the rocks as well. Each game begins with the song "
Calling All Angels "Calling All Angels" is a song by American rock band Train. It was included on the band's third studio album, '' My Private Nation'', and produced by Brendan O'Brien. It features Greg Leisz on pedal steel guitar. The song was the first track t ...
" by
Train In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and transport people or freight. Trains are typically pulled or pushed by locomotives (often ...
being played accompanied by a video that shows historical moments in team history, with an instrumental version of
Norman Greenbaum Norman Joel Greenbaum (born November 20, 1942) is an American singer-songwriter. He is primarily known for his 1969 song "Spirit in the Sky". Early life Greenbaum was born in Malden, Massachusetts. He was raised in an Orthodox Jewish househol ...
's "
Spirit in the Sky "Spirit in the Sky" is a song by American singer-songwriter Norman Greenbaum, originally written and recorded by Greenbaum and released in late 1969 from the album of the same name. The single became a gold record, selling two million copies f ...
" being played during the team's starting lineup announcement. Since 2016, the Angels' home run song has been " Bro Hymn" by Pennywise. Previous home run songs include " Song 2" by Blur, "
Chelsea Dagger "Chelsea Dagger" is a song by Scottish rock band the Fratellis. It was released as the second single from their debut studio album, ''Costello Music'' (2006), on 28 August 2006. It is named after Jon Fratelli's wife Heather, a burlesque dancer ...
" by
The Fratellis The Fratellis are a Scottish rock band from Glasgow, formed in 2005. The band consists of three unrelated members, who perform under pseudonyms: lead vocalist and guitarist Jon Fratelli, bassist Barry Fratelli, and drummer Mince Fratelli. Thei ...
, "
Kernkraft 400 "Kernkraft 400" (English: Nuclear Energy 400) is a song performed by German techno artist Zombie Nation and the first single from their album ''Leichenschmaus''. Released in 1999, it peaked at number 22 in Germany in February 2000 while becoming ...
" by Zombie Nation, and "Killin' It" by
Krewella Krewella is an American electronic dance music band from the Chicago suburb of Northbrook, Illinois, United States, that formed in 2007. Their musical style has been mainly described as EDM, dance-rock, and dance-pop. However, Krewella's style ...
. After an Angels home win, the phrase "Light That Baby Up!" is used in reference to Angel Stadium's landmark tall letter "A" with a halo surrounding the top, which lights up every time the Angels win a home game. Other phrases associated with Angel wins include "Just another Halo victory!", popularized by late Angels broadcaster Rory Markas; and before that: "And the Halo shines tonight!" used by legendary broadcaster
Dick Enberg Richard Alan Enberg (January 9, 1935 – December 21, 2017) was an American sportscaster. Over the course of an approximately 60-year career, he provided play-by-play of various sports for several radio and television networks, including N ...
. Also, after a win the song "
Paradise City "Paradise City" is a song by the American rock band Guns N' Roses, featured on their debut album, ''Appetite for Destruction'' (1987). Released as a single in January 1989, it is the only song on the album to feature a synthesizer. The song pea ...
" by Guns N' Roses is usually played. The Angels organization was the first North American team to employ the use of
thundersticks Thundersticks, sometimes known as bambams, are long, narrow plastic balloons that are used as promotional noise makers. The noise is created when two thundersticks are struck together. They are most often used at sporting events. Origin and p ...
.


The Rally Monkey

The
Rally Monkey The Rally Monkey is the unofficial mascot for the Los Angeles Angels Major League Baseball team. Introduction The character debuted on June 6, 2000, when the Angels were trailing the San Francisco Giants 5–4 in the bottom of the ninth inn ...
is a mascot for the Angels which appears if the Angels are losing a game or if the game is tied from the 7th inning on, but sometimes earlier depending on the situation. The Rally Monkey appears on the scoreboard in various movies or pop culture references that have been edited to include him. The Rally Monkey was born in 2000 when the scoreboard showed a clip from '' Ace Ventura: Pet Detective'', after which the Angels rallied to win the game. The clip proved to be so popular that the team hired Katie, a white-haired capuchin monkey, to star in original clips for later games. When seen, she jumps up and down to the
House of Pain House of Pain was an American hip-hop trio that released three albums in the 1990s. The group consisted of DJ Lethal, Danny Boy, and Everlast. The group's name is a reference to the H. G. Wells novel '' The Island of Dr. Moreau'', a refer ...
song "
Jump Around "Jump Around" is a song by American hip hop group House of Pain, produced by DJ Muggs of the hip hop group Cypress Hill, who has also covered the song. It became a hit in 1992, reaching number 3 in the United States. A 1993 re-release of the ...
" and holds a sign that says "RALLY TIME!" The Rally Monkey came to national and worldwide attention during the Angels' appearance in the 2002 World Series against the
San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...
. In the Game 6 of the series, the Angels were playing at home, but were trailing the series three games to two and facing elimination. They were down 5–0 as the game entered the bottom of the 7th inning. Amid fervid rally-monkey themed fan support, the Angels proceeded to score six unanswered runs over the next two innings, winning the game and turning the momentum of the series for good (they went on to clinch the championship in Game 7). From 2004 to 2009, the Angels reached the postseason five times, sparking a renewal of the Rally Monkey's popularity.


Rivalries

The Angels have developed many rivalries in and also outside of their division. They include the
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...
, Texas Rangers,
Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...
,
Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West division. The team joined the American League ...
,
Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...
, postseason history against the
Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...
, and the neighboring
Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
.


Texas Rangers

The Angels-Rangers rivalry has been said to have developed over a domination in the division between the two teams, and also in recent years more animosity between the two teams due to players who have played for both teams, including Nolan Ryan,
Mike Napoli Mike may refer to: Animals * Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum * Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off * Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and document ...
,
Darren Oliver Darren Christopher Oliver (born October 6, 1970) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He is a second generation major league player, as his father Bob Oliver played in the major leagues for nine seasons between 1967 and 1975. E ...
,
Vladimir Guerrero Vladimir Alvino Guerrero Sr. (born February 9, 1975), nicknamed "Vlad the Impaler", is a Dominican former professional baseball player who spent 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a right fielder and designated hitter. He played for ...
,
C. J. Wilson Christopher John Wilson (born November 18, 1980) is an American auto racing team owner and former professional baseball pitcher. Wilson pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers from 2005 to 2011 and the Los Angeles Angel ...
, and
Josh Hamilton Joshua Holt Hamilton (born May 21, 1981) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from to , most prominently as a member of the Texas Rangers teams that won two consecutive Americ ...
. In 2012, Wilson played a joke on Napoli, his former teammate, by
tweeting Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
his phone number, causing Napoli to exchange words with Wilson. The feuds go back to two incidents between Angels second baseman
Adam Kennedy Adam Thomas Kennedy (born January 10, 1976) is an American former professional baseball second baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland Athletics, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Washington National ...
and Rangers catcher
Gerald Laird Gerald Lee Laird III (born November 13, 1979) is an American former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers, Detroit Tigers, St. Louis Cardinals, Atlanta Braves, and Arizona Diamondbacks. C ...
which led to punches being thrown. The Angels and Rangers have each pitched a
perfect game Perfect game may refer to: Sports * Perfect game (baseball), a complete-game win by a pitcher allowing no baserunners * Perfect game (bowling), a 300 game, 12 consecutive strikes in the same game * Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League, New York ...
against each other, making them the only pair of MLB teams to have done so. Mike Witt pitched a perfect game for the Angels against the Rangers in 1984 at
Arlington Stadium Arlington Stadium was a baseball stadium located in Arlington, Texas, United States, located between Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. It served as the home for the Texas Rangers (MLB) from 1972 until 1993, after which the team moved into The Ba ...
and
Kenny Rogers Kenneth Ray Rogers (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particularly popular with country audiences but also charted mo ...
for the Rangers against the Angels in 1994.


Los Angeles Dodgers

The rivalry with the
Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
has been referred to as the ''Freeway Series'' because of the freeway system (mostly via I-5) linking the two teams' home fields. The Freeway Series rivalry developed mostly over the two teams sharing similar regions and fans having been split due to neighboring counties, similar to the Chicago Cubs vs.
Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...
rivalry A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant ...
, the
San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...
vs.
Oakland A's The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...
rivalry A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant ...
, the
Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...
vs.
Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...
rivalry A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant ...
, or the
New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...
vs.
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...
rivalry A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant ...
.


Game attendance

The Angels drew more than 3 million fans to the stadium from 2003 to 2019, and at least 2 million since 2002, and a game average in 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013 of 40,000 fans at each game despite not making the playoffs all four years. This is 2nd in all of MLB, only trailing the
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...
. In 2019, the Angels were fifth in MLB in attendance, with a total of 3,019,012 people. As of 2015, the Angels fans have set six Guinness World Records for the largest gatherings of people wearing blankets, wrestling masks, cowboy hats, wigs, Santa hats, superhero capes, and sombreros. They have also set the world record for largest gathering of people with selfie sticks. In 2009, the Angels were voted as the number one franchise in professional sports in Fan Value by ESPN magazine. In 2012, ESPN & Fan polls by ESPN ranked the Angels fifteenth in the best sports franchises, third best among MLB teams. The rankings were determined through a combination of sports analysts and fan votes ranking all sports franchises by a combination of average fan attendance, fan relations, "Bang for your Buck" or winning percentage over the past 3 years, ownership, affordability, stadium experience, players effort on the field and likability, coaching, and "Title Track".


Logos and colors

The Los Angeles Angels have used ten different logos and three different color combinations throughout their history. Their first two logos depict a baseball with wings and a halo over a baseball diamond with the letters "L" and "A" over it in different styles. The original team colors were the predominantly blue with a red trim. This color scheme would be in effect for most of the franchise's history lasting from 1961 to 1996. On September 2, 1965, with the team still a tenant of the Dodgers at Chavez Ravine, Autry changed its name from the "Los Angeles Angels" to the "California Angels". With the club's 1966 move to Anaheim, the logo changed as well. During the 31 years of being known as the "California Angels", the team kept the previous color scheme, however, their logo did change six times during this period. The first logo under this name was very similar to the previous "LA" logo, the only difference was instead of an interlocking "LA", there was an interlocking "CA". Directly after this from 1971 to 1985, the Angels adopted a logo that had the word "Angels" written on an outline of the State of California. Between the years 1971–1972 the "A" was lower-case while from 1973 to 1985 it was upper-case. It was in 1965, while the stadium was being finished, that Bud Furillo (of the Herald Examiner) coined its nickname, "the Big A" after the tall letter A that once stood beyond left-center field and served as the ballpark's primary scoreboard (it was later relocated to a section of the parking lot, south-east of the stadium). In 1986, the Angels adopted the "big A" on top of a baseball as their new logo, with the shadow of California in the background. After the "big A" was done in 1992, the Angels returned to their roots and re-adopted the interlocking "CA" logo with some differences. The Angels used this logo from 1993 to 1996, during that time, the "CA" was either on top of a blue circle or with nothing else. After the renovations of then-Anaheim Stadium and the takeover by the Walt Disney Company, the Angels changed their name to the "Anaheim Angels" along with changing the logo and color scheme. The first logo under Disney removed the halo and had a rather cartoon-like "ANGELS" script with a wing on the "A" over a periwinkle plate and crossed bats. With this change, the Angels' color scheme changed to dark blue and periwinkle. After a run with the "winged" logo from 1997 to 2001, Disney changed the Angels' logo back to a "Big A" with a silver halo over a dark blue baseball diamond. With this logo change, the colors changed to the team's current color scheme: predominantly red with some dark blue and white. When the team's name changed from the "Anaheim Angels" to the "Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim", the logo changed only slightly, the name "ANAHEIM ANGELS" and the blue baseball diamond were removed leaving only the "Big A". For the 2011 season, as part of the 50th anniversary of the Angels franchise, the halo on the 'Big A' logo temporarily changed colors from silver to old gold, paying tribute to the Angels logos of the past (and also the 50th Anniversary tradition of gold). The uniforms also reflected the change to the gold halo for this season. During the 50th Anniversary season the players wore throwback jerseys at each Friday home game reflecting all the different logos and uniforms previously worn by players. Also, Angels alumni from past seasons threw the ceremonious first pitch at every home game during the 50th Anniversary season. A new patch was added on the uniforms before the 2012 season, featuring a red circle encircling the words "Angels Baseball" and the club logo inside and flanking the year 1961 in the middle, which was the year the Angels franchise was established. With this new patch, the Angels' A with the halo now appears on three different locations of the jersey: the right shoulder, the wordmark, and the left shoulder.


Radio and television

, the Angels' flagship radio station is
Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...
-licensed KLAA 830AM, which is owned by the Angels themselves and carries ESPN Radio programming. It replaces KSPN (710 ESPN), on which frequency had aired most Angels games since the team's inception in 1961. That station, then KMPC, aired games from to . In & , the flagship station became
KRLA KRLA (870 kHz) "AM 870 The Answer" is a commercial AM radio station broadcasting a talk radio format. Licensed to Glendale, California, it serves Greater Los Angeles and Southern California. The station is owned by Salem Media Group, which al ...
(1110AM). In , it was replaced by
KLAC KLAC (570 AM) is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, serving Greater Los Angeles and much of surrounding Southern California. Owned by a joint venture between iHeartMedia, Inc. and the Los Angeles Dodgers b ...
for four seasons, including the 2002 World Series season. The Angels 2010 broadcast line-up was thrown into doubt with the death of
Rory Markas Rory Markas (December 20, 1955 – January 4, 2010) was an American sportscaster best known as the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim's play-by-play broadcaster for eight seasons and as the radio voice of the University of Southern California men's ba ...
in January 2010. The Angels had announced in November 2009 that Markas and
Mark Gubicza Mark Steven Gubicza (; born August 14, 1962), nicknamed "Gubie," is an American former professional baseball pitcher and sportscaster. Gubicza played for 14 major league seasons with the Kansas City Royals (1984–96) and Anaheim Angels (1997) ...
would broadcast Angels' televised games, with Terry Smith and José Mota handling the radio side. At the same time, the Angels announced that Steve Physioc and Rex Hudler would not return to the broadcasting team. On March 3, 2010 it was announced that Victor Rojas would replace Markas. In January 2021, Rojas announced that he would step away from the broadcasting booth. On March 11, 2021, it was announced that Matt Vasgersian would become the new play-by-play voice, alongside
Mark Gubicza Mark Steven Gubicza (; born August 14, 1962), nicknamed "Gubie," is an American former professional baseball pitcher and sportscaster. Gubicza played for 14 major league seasons with the Kansas City Royals (1984–96) and Anaheim Angels (1997) ...
and Jose Mota. Daron Sutton, son of former Dodger pitcher Don Sutton, was also hired to serve as backup play-by-play voice whenever Vasgersian has assignments with MLB Network and ESPN Major League Baseball, ESPN. Three months into the 2021 season, Sutton and the Angels parted ways, and former Miami Marlins announcer Rich Waltz took over as a substitute. Waltz only lasted until the end of the 2021 season, after which the Angels tapped studio host Patrick O'Neal (sportscaster), Patrick O'Neal to serve as Vasgersian's substitute. In addition, the Angels returned to a two-man booth with Mota departing to join the rival Dodgers' broadcast team. In 2008, KLAA broadcast spring training games on tape delay (broadcasting), tape delay from the beginning on February 28 to March 9 because of advertiser commitments to some daytime talk shows. Those games were available live only online. Live preseason broadcasts were to begin on March 10. In 2009, KFWB (AM), KFWB 980AM started broadcasting 110 weekday games, including postseason games, to better reach listeners in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County and other areas to the north. All 162 games plus post season games still air on KLAA. In 2010, KSPN 710AM broadcast at least 60 weekday games. This was a partial return to their old station from 2007. Angels radio broadcasts are also in Spanish on KWKW 1330AM and KWKU 1220AM. Bally Sports West, formerly known as ''Fox Sports West,'' holds the exclusive rights to the regional telecasts of approximately 150 Angels home and away games. Fox owned and operated MyNetworkTV affiliate KCOP-TV broadcast select games from 2006 to 2011, but opted to move those games to Fox Sports West in 2012. As all MLB teams, select national Angels telecasts can be found on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox, ESPN, Major League Baseball on TBS, TBS or MLB Network. During Disney's ownership of the franchise, the company planned to start an ESPN West regional sports network in 1999, which would also carry Anaheim Ducks, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim ice hockey games, but the plan was abandoned. During the 2009 season, Physioc and Hudler called about 100 games, while Markas and Gubicza had the remaining game telecasts (about 50, depending on ESPN Major League Baseball, ESPN and Major League Baseball on Fox, Fox exclusive national schedules). The split arrangement dated back to the 2007 season, when Mota and Gubicza were the second team. Markas debuted on TV in a three-game series at the Toronto Blue Jays in August 2007. Mota, who is bilingual and the son of former Los Angeles Dodgers, Dodger Manny Mota, has also called Angels games in Spanish. He does analysis from the dugout (baseball), dugout rather than the usual booth position. All locally broadcast games are produced by FSN regardless of the outlet actually showing the games.
Dick Enberg Richard Alan Enberg (January 9, 1935 – December 21, 2017) was an American sportscaster. Over the course of an approximately 60-year career, he provided play-by-play of various sports for several radio and television networks, including N ...
, who broadcast Angels baseball in the 1970s, is the broadcaster most identified with the Angels, using such phrases as "Oh, my!", "Touch 'em all!" after Angel home runs, and "The halo shines tonight!" Other former Angels broadcasters over the past three decades include Buddy Blattner, Don Wells, Dave Niehaus, Don Drysdale, Bob Starr (sportscaster), Bob Starr, Joe Torre, Paul Olden, Al Wisk, Al Conin, Mario Impemba, Sparky Anderson, Jerry Reuss, Ken Wilson (sportscaster), Ken Wilson, Ken Brett, and Ron Fairly. Jerry Coleman also spent time with the Angels organization in the early 1970s as a pre-game and post-game host before joining the San Diego Padres broadcast team. From 1994 until the end of the 2012 season, the public address announcer for most Angels home games was David Courtney, who also served as the public address announcer for the Los Angeles Kings and Los Angeles Clippers and a traffic reporter for Angels flagship KLAA 830 AM until his death on November 29, 2012. Starting in the 2013 season, Michael Araujo, the PA Announcer for the LA Galaxy since 2002, was selected as the new public address announcer for the Angels. Anaheim Ducks announcer Phil Hulett serves as the secondary public address announcer.


Season records


Awards and honors


Retired numbers

* No. 26 was retired for Gene Autry to indicate he was the team's "26th Man" (25 was, at the time, the player limit for any MLB team's Major League Baseball rosters, active roster, except in September) *No. 42 was retired throughout Major League Baseball in 1997 to honor Jackie Robinson.


Out of circulation, but not retired

*No. 1 has been out of circulation since the retirement of Bengie Molina. *No. 15 has been out of circulation since the retirement of
Tim Salmon Timothy James Salmon (born August 24, 1968), nicknamed "King Fish", is an American former professional baseball player and current sportcaster. He played his entire career in Major League Baseball (MLB) from to with the Anaheim Angels as an o ...
at the end of the 2006 season. *No. 45 has been out of circulation since the death of Tyler Skaggs in 2019.


Angels Hall of Fame

The Angels established a team Hall of Fame in 1988. They have inducted fifteen individuals (fourteen players and one executive) along with members of the 2002 team.


Team captains

* Jerry Remy 1977 * Don Baylor 1978–1982


Baseball Hall of Fame

The Angels have one member in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Hall of Fame,
Vladimir Guerrero Vladimir Alvino Guerrero Sr. (born February 9, 1975), nicknamed "Vlad the Impaler", is a Dominican former professional baseball player who spent 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a right fielder and designated hitter. He played for ...
, who was inducted in . Also, several Hall of Famers have spent part of their careers with the Angels and the Hall lists the Angels as the "primary team" of Nolan Ryan.


Ford C. Frick Award recipients


Roster


Minor league affiliations

The Los Angeles Angels farm team, farm system consists of six Minor League Baseball, minor league affiliates.


In popular culture

* The Angels are featured in ''The Jeffersons'' episode "The Unnatural", which first aired in 1985. * The Angels play a central role in the 1994 film ''Angels in the Outfield (1994 film), Angels in the Outfield'', a remake of the Angels in the Outfield (1951 film), 1951 film of the same title which featured the Pittsburgh Pirates in the same role. * The team is featured in the 1988 comedy film ''The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!, The Naked Gun''. * The 1990 comedy ''Taking Care of Business (film), Taking Care of Business'' features a
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
matchup between the Chicago Cubs and the California Angels. * The 1991 movie ''Talent for the Game'' features Edward James Olmos as a baseball scout for the California Angels. * During Disney's ownership of the Angels, the team was featured in the films ''Air Bud: Seventh Inning Fetch'', ''Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo'', and TV movie ''Angels in the Infield''. * In 2014, the Angels and Angel Stadium were featured in The Big Bang Theory (season 8), season 8 of ''The Big Bang Theory'' in an episode titled "The First Pitch Insufficiency". * In 1999, the movie For Love of the Game (film), For Love of the Game features a scene near the climax of the film when Billy Chapel (Kevin Costner) mentions he's in Anaheim to play against the Angels.


Notes


References


Further reading

*Bisheff, Steve. ''Tales from the Angels Dugout: The Championship Season and Other Great Angels Stories.'' Sports Publishing L.L.C., 2003. . *''2005 Angels Information Guide.''


External links

*
Los Angeles Angels Baseball-Reference.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Los Angeles Angels Los Angeles Angels, Major League Baseball teams Sports teams in Anaheim, California Baseball teams established in 1961 Cactus League